COVID 19 is creating many unique challenges for literally everyone and the Land Bank is no exception. The Land Bank typically uses a variety of strategies to achieve stewardship activities including volunteer work parties, collaborating with partners, engaging special interest groups, and leveraging help from youth conservation corps type organizations. At this time we are  Continue Reading

By Louise Dustrude A number of people have been asking one another what those bright yellow flowers are that have appeared recently at Island Rec’s LaFarge Open Space, aka the gravel pit. So we checked with Eliza Habegger, the land steward at the Land Bank, whose responsibilities also include ecological assessment, monitoring, and restoration on  Continue Reading

This FHL Tide Bite was written by Jen Burnaford… My first trip to UW Friday Harbor Labs was in 1995. After completing my undergraduate thesis on freshwater zooplankton and spending a post-bac year chasing primates through the jungles of Borneo, I had been accepted into the PhD program at Oregon State University in the Menge/Lubchenco  Continue Reading

Your Conservation Land Bank turns 30 this year and is celebrating with a multi-island exploration. Every preserve has a story – gather your family and get outside this summer to discover what your public lands have to say! The San Juan County Land Bank teamed up with the Lopez, Orcas, and San Juan Island libraries  Continue Reading

We are living in a time of unprecedented trial. In an effort to bring you a much-needed reconnection to the natural world, Friends of the San Juans would like to invite you to attend an upcoming Zoom presentation with Peter Cavanagh. Are you experiencing travel withdrawal after months of lockdown and cancelled travel plans? Peter  Continue Reading

Fact Check of Whalen Petition Dear Editor and Community, We recently received in the mail Mr. Ron Whalen’s request to have us sign a petition to eliminate the Land Bank by December 2020. The request was loaded with falsehoods and outrageously attempted to dupe our community into thinking that a yes or no answer meant  Continue Reading

The following is shared from the Old Military Road Trail Committee… Hello Fellow Islanders and Hikers, It seems that for many of us, ‘hunkering down’ on San Juan Island has involved enjoying our multitude of trails and even choosing some new trails to explore. If you’ve not yet experienced the American Camp Trail, springtime is  Continue Reading

With so many unknowns happening for all of us it is easy to stray from the positive events happening every day that make our world better. Often, those events are acts of kindness that deserve celebration. Sometimes those events are as simple as helping others plant a garden. Last spring, the WSU Master Gardener program,  Continue Reading

Know Your Islanders: Thane Pratt, Kokoda Sketches: A Birding Trek across Papua New Guinea Lace up your (virtual) hiking boots and join wildlife biologist Thane Pratt and artist Szabolcs Kokay on a trek across the mountain ranges of Papua New Guinea.  We’ll relive some of the adventures and experience the biological wonders of this, the  Continue Reading

FREEZER BURNED: Tales of Interior Alaska is a new regular column on the San Juan Update written by Steve Ulvi… After gritting through another sub-arctic winter, there was celebratory pleasure in first plying the roiling, wood-strewn waters of the Yukon River in spring. The boat season followed seven to ten days of heavy running ice.  Continue Reading

The 2020 boating season is officially upon us, and soon our anchorages will begin to fill with local and visiting private boats. Our amazing group of islands, where boaters find wonder and relaxation, are also where fish and wildlife find food and shelter. One of the Salish Sea’s most critical and sensitive marine habitats is  Continue Reading

As you may have heard, asian hornets (a.k.a: Murder Hornets) have found their way to the United States and have been detected in Washington. They are an invasive species and will decimate honey bee hives. If you would like to help the State of Washington, here is a project you can do on your property  Continue Reading

There was a 3.0 earthquake last night, about 1:15 in the morning, just south east of Roche Harbor. See more info on the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network website.

It is one of those events that – if you were alive – you likely remember. Where were you at 8:32 a.m. on Sunday, May 18, 1980? Monday marks 40 years since Mount St. Helens erupted. Fifty-seven people died, and the way we look at the power of nature was altered forever. This week WSDOT  Continue Reading

Last week, the national winners of the Exploravision Competition were announced and the first place-winning project was Get Away! Bacteriophage, submitted by Friday Harbor Elementary School (FHES) students Jodie Wehner, 2nd grade, Ava Youngsman 2nd grade, and Nancy Wehner, 1st grade. Earlier this spring, three FHES STEM teams had received regional and honorable mention recognition  Continue Reading

To the Editor: In this time of Stay-at-Home regulations, coinciding with some lovely spring weather, we at the Friday Harbor Labs (FHL) have noticed increased use of University of Washington properties. We absolutely understand the desire to get out of the house and find new places to explore, and we want to be good neighbors,  Continue Reading

60-Second Videos from the Preservation Trust The San Juan Preservation Trust has developed a series of quick, easy-to-watch videos featuring the wonder-filled nature in our own backyards as spring unfolds around us. If you could use some vicarious doses of nature’s medicine, click to watch the video above and then look for more of the  Continue Reading

The Town of Friday Harbor sees the health of our trees as vital to our sense of well-being and as a defining characteristic of our community. Healthy trees provide us the daily benefit of cleaner air, shade and source of aesthetic beauty. The Tree City USA signs at the Town’s entrances tell visitors that this  Continue Reading

Your Conservation Land Bank will resume opening the gate at Mount Grant Preserve beginning this Sunday, May 10th.   We have switched to our spring/summer calendar and driving access to the summit will be available twice a week, Sundays and Wednesdays from 10am to 7pm. Please continue following social distancing guidelines whenever visiting your preserves: If  Continue Reading

This May 2020 edition of Tide Bites was written by Alyssa Scott… As the tides of life have ebbed and flowed, I’ve continually found myself on the shores of FHL [Friday Harbor Labs]. My first encounter with the Labs was via a two-week research sailing expedition through the San Juan Islands with Deep Green Wilderness.  Continue Reading

Need an excuse to get outside? (safely and and while maintaining self-distancing, of course…) OLYMPIA–The Washington Invasive Species Council, state agencies and researchers are calling for a census in May to help determine the location of Scotch broom throughout the state. “We need everyone’s help to size up the problem,” said Justin Bush, executive coordinator  Continue Reading

No standing in lines and no rushed shopping at the Mullis Senior Community Center this year. We are online only in compliance with all safety guidelines for COVID-19. Our Spring Plant Sale starts at 9am, Tuesday, May 5. Healthy veggie starts need new homes! Eight new varieties this year, including two delicious cherry tomatoes, cucumbers,  Continue Reading